The current lockdown has closed Norden Farm so we cannot present anything at present. This meant that our proposed concert with the Daphnis Wind Ensemble could not take place on 4th February. We hope that there may be an opportunity for the Daphnis Wind Ensemble to perform for MMS later this year.
We are also unable to proceed with the concert proposed for 4th March. The Busch Trio are based in Amsterdam and cannot enter the UK at present, and Norden Farm remains closed except for online classes and takeaway meals.
We still hope to be able to present the other concerts we have planned at Norden Farm. However, this depends how the Government relaxes the lockdown rules, so there is no certainty that they can take place.
We have provisionally planned a concert on 29th April, when we hope to welcome back the Consone Quartet, who are now BBC New Generation Artists. They propose to play quartets by Dvorak, Mozart, Stravinsky and Schumann.
Our Celebrity concert is proposed for 20th May and we hope to feature the Heath Quartet. Their programme is to be decided.
Details of both the concerts will be available on our website in due course, and I will write again to tell you when tickets become available for purchase.
Tickets and Membership
Ticket prices, MMS membership, season tickets and the Patrons scheme will be announced when we are able to confirm that the first concert will go ahead.
75th Anniversary Season
As I have mentioned previously, the season 2021-2022 is the Society's 75th, and we are planning a bumper series of concerts to mark this important milestone. We are hoping to present an opera, and look forward to the return of the Wihan Quartet, as well as the postponed visit by the Chamber Philharmonic Europe, amongst other exciting concerts. Details will be announced later in the year.
End of the Endellion
We learned recently that the Endellion Quartet, who have played in many concerts for MMS over the last 40 years, have played their last concert, and are hanging up their quartet bows. Their first concert for MMS was in November 1981, a year or two after they were formed. This was memorable for the wrong reasons - a bomb scare at the Town Hall meant that the concert had to be hastily moved to the Desborough School! Most recently they played at our Gala concert in June 2019, celebrating their 40 years as a Quartet.
The Endellion were also Norden Farm's Quartet in Residence from its opening in 2000, playing four concerts each year in the Courtyard Theatre, until 2006. We are sorry that there won't be any more quartet performances, and wish them all the best in their joint retirement.
Committee members' suggested streamings
Although we cannot present concerts ourselves just now, there are many available for streaming online. Here are some more suggestions:
The Wigmore Hall presents has a new Spring series of Chamber Music Concerts -
https://wigmore-hall.org.ukMaking Music
A series of concerts recorded during lockdown, available on YouTube.
https://www.makingmusic.org.ukThe Hope at Home concerts with star violinist Daniel Hope from his living room in Berlin.
https://www.arte.tv/en/videos/101140-019-A/hope-home-next-generation/Lawrence Power's West Wycombe Chamber Music festival
http://westwycombechambermusic.org.uk/2020-festival/The weekly Bachtrack Newsletter provides listings of concerts, opera and dance selected from the Bachtrack.com website.
Support for Norden Farm
As you may have seen in the Maidenhead Advertiser, the RBWM Council is proposing to cut most of the grants to Arts organisations in the Royal Borough for the forthcoming financial year. The Council has been a key financial supporter of Norden Farm before and since its opening in 2000, and the loss of its grant will be a blow to Norden Farm. We hope that users and supporters of Norden Farm will continue to use and support its activities, classes and performances to confirm the benefit it brings to the community.
Thanks for your support
We thank you for your support of the Society and hope that you will continue to enjoy our concerts when we are able to present them.
Best regards,
Peter Griffiths
MMS Membership Secretary
Registered Charity No 287794
